Shane Daly Movies
- 1999
Habitually abused by her arrogant surgeon husband Thomas (Stephen Lang), successful realtor Elizabeth Cooper (Joanna Kerns) has decided to get a divorce. Shortly after this decision, Elizabeth is in conference with a new client, John Davis (Tim Matheson)--who stops her short by announcing that he is a "hit man", hired by Thomas to murder Elizabeth. But after meeting his potential victim, John has had a change of heart, and is now determined to rescue her from her husband. Togther, John and Elizabeth formulate a plan: She will disappear, he will arrange the evidence to make it seem as if he's killed her, and then he'll trap Thomas into a confession. Although she hates the idea of being so long separated from her beloved children, Elizabeth agrees to the scheme. That things don't go off precisely as intended should at this point be a foregone conclusion. Made for television (and based on a true story to boot!), At the Mercy of a Stranger first aired November 3, 1999, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2000
Just in case anyone thought that the life of a Playboy Bunny was all toothy smiles and heavy tipping, this made-for-TV movie is a prime vessel of disillusion. Set in the early 1960s, the story follows a brace of small-town cuties, Holly (Marina Black) and Ruby (Julie Condra), who are among the first of well-endowed young ladies to land jobs as Bunnies (waitress dressed in revealing costumes, replete with rabbit-ear headgear and cotton tails) in the many Playboy "key" clubs dotting the landscape of the era. Our starry-eyed heroines are soon made to realize that the rules and regulations of the profession are strictly enforced--for example, woe betide the hapless Bunny who is caught chewing gum, or who forgets to point her tail in the direction of the person she is serving. While one of the girls becomes the protegee of tough but protective "Bunny mother" Miranda (Marilu Henner), the other buckles under to the temptations of wealthy customers and free-flowing liquor. One observer labelled this one as Valley of the Bunnies, while for cable-TV exposure the film was rechristened The Price of Beauty. Under its original cognomen, A Tale of Two Bunnies made its ABC network bow on March 20, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marilu Henner, Rhea Perlman, (more)
A powerful ancient relic holds the key to ultimate destruction in director Stuart Urban's religious-flavored thriller Revelation. Since the crucifixion of Christ, the Loculus has eluded the grasp of the demonic Grand Master (Udo Kier), who seeks to find the artifact and learn its mysterious secrets in order to unlock its power to devastating results. As the Grand Master continues his quest for the Loculus, a billionaire mogul named Magnus Martel (Terence Stamp) enlists the reluctant aid of his computer expert son, Jake (James D'Arcy), and an alchemy student named Mira (Natasha Wightman) in finding the Loculus before the Grand Master completes his quest. Traveling the world in a race to save the soul of humankind, the trio attempts to unlock the centuries-old secrets of the Loculus, which may ultimately reveal the connection between science and religion as well as the salvation of the human race. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Terence Stamp, James D'Arcy, (more)
Jamie Foxx once again brilliantly demonstrates his acting chops as Stan "Tookie" Williams, the South Central Los Angeles native who, at the age of 17, co-founded the infamous Crips street gang. If one is to believe the script of this made-for-cable film, Williams hadn't intended the Crips to wallow in crime and violence; instead, he'd hoped that the gang would form a united front to protect his 'hood from other gangbangers. Needless to say, it didn't turn out that way, and within a few years of its 1971 formation, the Crips was the biggest and most powerful gang in the country, with branches in virtually every state. Ultimately, Williams is charged with murder and sentenced to San Quentin's death row in 1987. There he experiences an epiphany and becomes an advocate for peace, harmony, and tolerance, writing children's books that preach against the lure of street gangs. As the years roll by and the date of his execution draws closer, Williams manages to negotiate a peace between the Crips and their chief rivals, the Bloods, and even manages to receive three Nobel Prize nominations. Lynn Whitfield co-stars as Barbara Becnel, the crusading journalist who helped Williams see the light -- not so much to save his soul, but to prevent a similar fate from befalling her own son. Although considerable liberties are taken with the facts, Redemption: The Stan "Tookie" Williams Story neither glamorizes nor excuses its title character, nor the "gangsta" culture that he so enthusiastically embraced in his youth. After a showing at the Sundance Film Festival, the movie made its FX network debut on March 3, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jamie Foxx, Lynn Whitfield, (more)
Based on the popular series of children's books by Deborah Gregory, the made-for-cable The Cheetah Girls is all about four teenage girlfriends, all from different ethnic and economic backgrounds, all attending a Manhattan high school specializing in fashion design. The foursome includes the unofficial leader, Galleria Garibaldi (Raven) and her pals Dorinda (Sabrina Bryan) and Chanel (Adrienne Bailon), as well as comparative newcomer Aqua (Kiely Williams). Aspiring to pop-music stardom, the quartet forms a girl group, whereupon they attract the interest of music teacher (and former disco queen) Drinka Champagne (Sandra Caldwell) -- who, in turn, refers the girls to Jackal Johnson (Vincent Corazza), a charming but duplicitous producer for Def Duck Records. Sensing that the Cheeta Girls' first taste of showbiz success will degenerate into exploitation and backstabbing, Galleria's mom, ex-model Dorothea (Lynn Whitfield), tries to save her daughter and friends from the cruelties of life in the fast lane. The Cheetah Girls debuted August 15, 2003, on the Disney Channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Raven Symone, Lynn Whitfield, (more)
Cabin Fever director Eli Roth skips the humor of his freshman feature and goes straight for the jugular in this unrelenting scare-fest about a pair of libidinous American backpackers seeking cheap thrills in the European countryside. Their carefree college days close behind and the responsibility of the real world looming ever closer on the horizon, Josh (Derek Richardson) and Paxton (Jay Hernandez) strap on their backpacks and prepare for a stratospheric last hurrah of booze, babes, drugs, and debauchery halfway across the globe. It's during a visit to Amsterdam that the pair meets up with raucous Icelandic backpacker Oli (Eythor Gudjonsson), and after the three globe-trotting thrill seekers catch wind of a Slovakian city whose male population has dwindled as a result of civil strife -- leaving the ladies ready and willing to accept any male companionship that might turn up at the local hostel -- the trio quickly beats a hasty retreat to the out-of-the-way oasis. Upon check-in, the trio is greeted by a bevy of beautiful locals and is quickly convinced that the hedonistic hideaway is indeed the real deal. Hazily awakening the following morning to find no trace of backpacking buddy Oli, Paxton chalks his former traveling companion's disappearance up to capriciousness and prepares for another day of debauchery, despite Josh's rapidly elevating sense of unease. Now trapped defenselessly in a foreign land without any means of escape and no way of anticipating the unimaginable hell that lies ahead, the pair is plunged into a torturous netherworld where the screams of the damned fill the air with dread and the warm rays of the sun are little more than a fading memory. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jay Hernandez, Derek Richardson, (more)
Produced for cable's ESPN network, Codebreakers dramatizes a real-life cheating scandal that rocked the foundations of West Point in 1951. Cadet Brian Nolan (Zachery Ty Bryan) is the roommate of varsity football players George Holbrook (Jeff Roop) and Bob Blaik (Corey Sevier), the latter being the son of West Point's colorful football coach Earl "Red" Blaik (Scott Glenn) -- the man who, according to legend, coined the phrase "winning isn't everything, it's the only thing" (significantly, Blaik's assistant coach was Vince Lombardi). Through casual conversation, young Nolan discovers to his horror that several of Blaik's players have taken the coach's philosophy literally, to the extent of cheating on exams to keep up their required GPAs. Their assumption -- not borne out by fact, as it turns out -- is that the coach will never find out, and if he does, he won't care. The ensuing scandal plays right into the hands of West Point's hard-nosed Commandant Paul D Harkins (Jude Ciccolelle), who, long resentful of the prominence of football at the academy, has eagerly awaited the opportunity to topple Coach Blaik from his throne. Ultimately, 83 cadets, including Bob Blaik, are implicated in the scandal -- and the penalty for breaking the Point's sacred Honor Code is a terrible one indeed. The most intriguing aspect of the film is the portrayal of whistleblower Brian Nolan, who though he has technically done the Right Thing is not a particularly likable person; indeed, certain viewers may well be swayed to the side of the disgraced football players as they make Nolan's life Hell on earth for telling what he knows. Filmed in Toronto, Codebreakers was first telecast on December 9, 2005. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Scott Glenn, Zachery Ty Bryan, (more)
The feature debut from writer/director Dan Wilde this British drama centers on a family split apart in the wake of its patriarch's death. Jennifer Ehle stars as widowed Alice, who eventually moves on and remarries, a move that has a devastating effect on her son Jack, played by Mark Wells. Years later, the family reunites and long-supressed feelings are finally revealed. Alpha Male also stars Danny Huston. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer Ehle, Danny Huston, (more)
Two kids with nothing in common are brought together in a very unexpected way in this comedy. Nell (Samaire Armstrong) is a pretty but hopelessly geeky teenage girl who loves Shakespeare and wants little more than to study literature at Yale when she graduates from high school in a few months Woody (Kevin Zegers), who lives next door, is the quarterback on the school's football team, and seems like a sure bet to land a lucrative football scholarship despite the fact he isn't especially bright. Nell and Woody are not at all friendly and normally have nothing to say to one another, but one day during a class field trip to a historical museum, the two fall under the spell of an Incan icon and when they awake the next morning, Woody's mind is in Nell's body, and vice versa. Neither is comfortable with their sudden gender switch or having to assume the other's personalities, but they quickly realize that until they can find a way to reverse the spell, they have to work together if Nell is to go to Yale and Woody is to get his scholarship and move away from this loutish parents (Sharon Osborne and Maury Chaykin. Elton John was an executive producer on It's A Boy Girl Thing, and songs from his back catalog appear on the soundtrack. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Kevin Zegers, Samaire Armstrong, (more)
- 2007
Tim Plester wrote, directed and stars in this short comedy about the ups and downs of both love and communication. A British man (Plester) is in love with a woman from Scandinavia (Myanna Buring). The language barrier between them proves to be emotional was well as verbal, and we're given access though their inner thoughts through subtitles as they break up, reconcile and generally try to understand one another. English Language (With English Subtitles) received its American premiere at the 2007 Los Angeles Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Plester, MyAnna Buring, (more)
Three American students studying art in Rome are drawn into a grim world of torture and suffering in director Eli Roth's blackly comic sequel to the horror hit that shocked the world. Beth (Lauren German), Whitney (Bijou Phillips), and Lorna (Heather Matarazzo) have ventured outside of their stateside surroundings in order to get a more worldly appreciation of the arts. But sketching nudes all day can take its toll on even the most talented artist, and when class is over the three girls jump at the opportunity to experience Europe firsthand. As they set out on the train for an impromptu weekend trip, however, the coeds are surprised to cross paths with the beautiful model they had just been sketching. It appears that she, too, is preparing for a vacation that promises to be both relaxing and rejuvenating, and a generous invitation to join her at a remote hostel surrounded by soothing hot springs ultimately proves too tempting for the adventurous Americans to pass up. Unfortunately for the unsuspecting students, one person's idea of relaxing can be another's worst nightmare. Now on an unavoidable collision course with two American businessmen who long to get an edge on their competition by experiencing the thrill of the kill and a scythe-wielding woman who maintains her youthful visage using the Elizabeth Bathory method, these unsuspecting students are about to fall into a trap that remains one of the sadistic and wealthy elite's most well-guarded secrets. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lauren German, Roger Bart, (more)
